The new policy is intended to reduce ______ emissions.

• A. Methane
• B. Carbon
• C. Oxygen
• D. Nitrogen

Answer: (B)

This question tests understanding of common policy wording about pollution. When people talk about emissions in the context of climate change, they usually refer to carbon emissions—the amount of carbon dioxide released, especially from burning fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide is the main greenhouse gas targeted in many broad climate policies because it drives long-term warming, so a policy is typically described as aiming to reduce carbon emissions.

Methane is indeed a greenhouse gas, but the standard, broad policy phrasing is about carbon emissions, not specifically methane. Oxygen and nitrogen are not the pollutants usually targeted in this context; they’re major components of air, and reducing them isn’t the aim of typical emissions policies.

So the best completion is carbon, since it matches the common way policy aims to address CO2 produced by energy use and burning fuels.